By Juan Carlos Gutierrez

Today is a very important day in the history of HEdCen Football development. Based on what I observed in practice this morning, I would consider this day to be a turning point in the way football will be played in HEdCen. Our teams will compete with more confidence, organization, and teamwork. And it’s all about the system of attacking and defending which all teams 98 and up are adapting.

We did the usual passing and trapping drills, then heading and shooting. After that, the older kids jogged for about 20 minutes in the big field. That was the start of their endurance training. It was a jog that I believe was good for all the participants except Skie who twisted his ankle during the exercise. It didn’t look serious and I hope it’ll heal in a few days.

Our trip to Barotac is on Tuesday. I do have some concerns regarding our preparations for the games. One of course is Skie’s ankle. I can’t be too sure it will be ready on time so I told him to come to training tomorrow so we could observe his injury and decide if he could still practice.

Another concern is the stamina of the Condat brothers who just trained this morning. They seemed very tired towards the end of the 10-minute game earlier. I am confident though that given a few more days of practice, they will be fit for the 5-a-side games. Fortunately, their teammates, Miggy Santos-Tankia and Vinz Epino are showing good signs of mental and physical preparedness for the coming tournament. What worries me most is whether the twins will be in shape to play the left and right wing of the 11-a-side practice game against the Born 95-96 Barotac team. I plan to use the 4-4-2 formation but it will require them to run like hell so I am considering the 4-3-3 formation with the twins as forwards and Miguel Almazan as striker. I discussed the matter with Coach Bernard but I guess it would be best to consult the players as well.

I am confident that HEdCen will be sending very strong teams to Barotac. At first, I was doubtful about the defense of our 98 team. Raja was confused the past 2 days on his role to support the forwards in offense and the transition from offense to defense. This morning, he played like he understood our game plan very well. Raja blasted the goal from half-court several times in the scrimmage from back passes and loose balls. He was quick to switch to defensive mode upon his team’s loss of ball possession. What impressed me most was his attitude that no one was going through him without a beating. Hehe. The left defender would probably be Jodi or Mico. Mico has a very strong kick but he needs to work on his transition game. Jodi can play beside Alain and replace Jamy if more muscle is needed in front. Alain has a solid kick that will score goals and he is already learning to slow down the ball when needed and make better decisions on offense.

The most important thing that we need to work on tomorrow would be the 98’s defense. They will be playing boys born 1997 in Iloilo. That is the category they are joining. If it is decided that Ackie plays with them, then their defense will be stronger. I will test their defense against the 96 team and we will work on areas which we could improve on.

Today, I also witnessed Marsha and Louise’s ability to pass. I always criticized Marsha that she could not pass the ball. She was used to individual powerplay in front. It is a fact that other teams will adjust to her and improve their defending and eventually stop her. They did just that this year. Our girls 93 ended up 3rd place. We can’t afford to send teams that rely on one person to win games for them. It is in this case that the other players are being developed including Marsha’s passing skills. Marsha will be playing in the 92 division but her offensive support will be Louise and Mary Rose. They may be young but i believe that their skills will be superior to the other schools. Even Woodrose will be surprised. I just hope that these girls will make a conscious effort to work as a team on offense and improve their passing.

I am also happy that the defenders of the girls teams are training consistently and putting a lot of effort upgrading their defensive skills. They are still adjusting to their roles as back support to the forwards but I am confident they will learn this in a few weeks.

In the afternoon session, Moira and Inigo played exceptionally well. Moira, born 1999, showed she could strike the ball hard, pass, and dribble well. In the scrimmages, she applied the outside and inside turns to get past her opponents and even used the step-over fake at one time.

Inigo Cuervo was absolutely brilliant. He is a striker who is simply goal-hungry and will do everything to score. His team with Ronnel and Gio Ciro was the youngest but they beat all other teams.

Hopefully, there will be more sparks of brilliance in tomorrow’s practice. We will have very few drills and lots of games.